<p>Hey, I have got into both University of Illinois Urbana Champaign in USA and University of Manchester in UK for Mechanical Engineering and having a hard time deciding where to go...
BTW I am an international to both places..At UIUC it would be a bachelors course and the fee would be 160K USD, meaning I would have to take a 80K loan, which I am scared would burden me for life....
At Manchester, it is a 4 years(masters) course and the fee would be 130K USD... cheaper than USA and if I do masters also in UIUC it would go to 240K!!!
So Manchester seems to be of greater value but I would like to study in the States...
I am also not sure about the rep. of manchester...
In the QS rankings Manchester is ranked higher than UIUC but in the other ranking Manchester is non-existent while UIUC is at the top....
So Im in a predicament hope to get some views to help me decide which is better...
Thank You.</p>
<p>If you want to study and work in the US someday, go for UIUC. Otherwise, go for Manchester. </p>
<p>Don’t base your decision on world rankings. They’re nonsense.</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply…so do you mean I cant work in US with Manchester uni…can I further my studies in US with Manchester masters degree</p>
<p>I’m not sure if you can work in the US given that you’re not an American and you’re not a greencard holder. But having a degree from Manchester doesn’t have anything to do about it. It’s more about visa rules and restriction reasons… In that same way that having a UIUC degree won’t guarantee you of a job in the UK, or even in the US if you don’t have a working visa, though I would presume that it would be a lot easier for you to acquire a US working visa if you’re in the US.</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply but I heard that in the US, companies dont give jobs to international graduates, you must be post-graduate to get a job in the US…</p>
<p>First off, you can’t get a loan that big in the US without a US citizen or permanent resident co-signer. You would have to borrow it in your home country. This probably means that UIUC is out.</p>
<p>It is almost impossible for people who have only a Bachelors degree to find a company that will sponsor them for an H-1B (work) visa after the OPT time runs out. Yes, it is easier for engineers to make this happen, but there is no way that you can count on it. Every single person who I personally know who has managed to get an H-1B has a Ph.D. in a scientific or technical field and multiple years of professional experience in their home countries in addition to multiple years of post-doctoral research in the US.</p>
<p>If you complete an undergraduate degree in another country it is entirely possible for you to come to the US for a Master’s degree and/or Ph.D. </p>
<p>To be completely honest, Manchester is the best deal of these two. If you don’t have any decent affordable options in your home country, go to Manchester.</p>
<p>Oh, Thanks for the reply, but is Manchester reputable and will it’s Masters be recogonized worldwide?</p>
<p>^ Not Cambridge reputable, but certainly a respectable university, nonetheless.</p>
<p>“Oh, Thanks for the reply, but is Manchester reputable and will it’s Masters be recogonized worldwide?”</p>
<p>Not really. It’s well respect in the UK and maybe western Europe, but few British universities (excluding Oxbridge and maybe LSE) are recognized worldwide (US, Asia, Latin America, etc.). If you are interested in science/engineering, definitely opt for UIUC IMO; you will most likely get a job if you do well, and a green card a few years after that.</p>